A 84-room riverside Anantara on the Mae Ping River in central Chiang Mai — opened 2002 as The Chedi by Adrian Zecha, rebranded as Anantara in 2013 — with The Service 1921 restaurant in the former British Consulate building.
"The original Chedi by Adrian Zecha, rebranded as Anantara in 2013. The 1920s former British Consulate is preserved as the property's signature dining room. The river-and-central booking that competes for the city booking against 137 Pillars on the eastern bank."
The property opened on 1 March 2002 as The Chedi Chiang Mai — Adrian Zecha's small-resort group's first Northern Thai property — with the architectural commission going to Singapore practice Kerry Hill Architects (Hill's signature contemporary-Asian-vernacular design vocabulary). The site is on a 6,500-square-metre plot directly on the Mae Ping River at Charoen Prathet Road, with the principal architectural decision being the integration of the existing 1921 former British Consulate building (a colonial-period Lanna-vernacular building that had stood on the site since 1921) as the property's signature heritage element. The contemporary hotel pavilions wrap around the preserved Consulate, with the Consulate itself converted into the principal restaurant and reception. GHM (the Adrian Zecha group) operated The Chedi until 2013, when Anantara Hotels acquired the management contract and rebranded the property; the Kerry Hill architecture and the Consulate restoration remain unchanged.
The 84 rooms — including 8 suites — are arranged across the building's three contemporary wings, with the principal architectural decision being the river orientation: every category faces the Mae Ping. Standard categories at 38 square metres include the Kerry Hill cement-and-teak design vocabulary; Premier categories at 48 sqm add a balcony; the Anantara Suite at 95 sqm is the milestone unit, with a private wraparound terrace overlooking the river and the Consulate building. Bathrooms are travertine and brass; bath products are Anantara's signature.
The Service 1921 — opened with the hotel as the principal restaurant — operates inside the original 1921 British Consulate building, with the original colonial-period architecture preserved (verandahs, hardwood floors, the original Consul's library) and a contemporary Pacific-Asian register from the kitchen team. The kitchen has been a Chiang Mai dining destination since 2002 and remains the most-recommended hotel restaurant in central Chiang Mai. The Restaurant on the Riverbank handles the all-day brasserie programme. The Bar is the cocktail-and-aperitivo programme. The 30-metre infinity pool runs along the river edge — the most-photographed Chiang Mai pool. The Anantara Spa runs five treatment rooms.
The Mae Ping River position is the booking proposition. From the front door it is two minutes by tuk-tuk to the Old City and the Tha Phae Gate, four minutes to the Sunday Walking Street market, two minutes to the Night Bazaar, six minutes to Wat Chedi Luang, and 18 minutes by car to Chiang Mai International Airport. The walking-Chiang-Mai brief is unmatched; the Mae Ping riverside walking path is at the door. For travellers wanting the central river-and-walking-Chiang-Mai booking with the Marriott Bonvoy programme via Anantara, this is unambiguous. Four Seasons is the rural-resort alternative; 137 Pillars is the Wat-Ket heritage alternative; Anantara is the central-and-river alternative.
An Anantara Suite with the river-facing terrace, dinner at The Service 1921 in the original 1921 British Consulate, the riverside infinity pool through the morning. The right central Chiang Mai honeymoon booking for couples wanting the heritage-and-river register over the rural-resort or the Wat-Ket alternative.
A milestone-anniversary booking with the Anantara Suite and private dinner-for-two on the river verandah of the original Consulate. The hotel handles silver, gold and diamond anniversaries with the Anantara service register.
For business travellers needing the central walking-Chiang-Mai address with the Anantara service register, this is the right Chiang Mai booking. Premier categories with the river view and the Service 1921 dinner programme handle the working-and-client register.
123-123/1 Charoen Prathet Road
Chiang Mai 50100
Thailand
Tha Phae Gate / Old City 2 min by tuk-tuk; Night Bazaar 2 min on foot; Sunday Walking Street 4 min; Wat Chedi Luang 6 min by tuk-tuk; Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX) 18 min by car
84 rooms (incl. 8 suites)
Deluxe Room from $360/night
Premier Room from $480/night
Junior Suite from $720/night
Anantara Suite from $1,400/night
Check-in: 3:00 PM
Check-out: 12:00 PM
Opened 1 March 2002 (as The Chedi); Anantara since 2013
Marriott Bonvoy / Anantara
The Service 1921 (1921 British Consulate)
Restaurant on the Riverbank
The Bar — cocktails and aperitivo
30m riverside infinity pool
Anantara Spa with 5 treatment rooms
Kerry Hill Architects building
Direct Mae Ping River frontage
From $360/night. Anantara Suite books five months ahead. The Service 1921 reservations recommended at booking.
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